Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Did you know that October is Fair Trade Month? Do you even know what Fair Trade means? I think the term Fair Trade is something that most people have heard of and they know it is a positive thing, but they aren't really sure exactly what it means or why it is important. Products that carry the Fair Trade Certified logo are sourced from farmers and workers who are fairly compensated. The goal is to help producers in developing countries establish better trading conditions and build sustainable businesses.

"Fair Trade USA is the leading third-party certifier of Fair Trade products in the United States. We enable you, the consumer, to make a difference with your dollar. We help people and the planet work in tandem so both are healthy and sustained. We provide farmers in developing nations the tools to thrive as international business people."

The most common goods you may see carrying the Fair Trade Certified logo are coffee, cocoa, chocolate and tea but it goes beyond that and touches handicrafts, sugar, bananas, honey wind and even more. I know it can be a challenge to find Fair Trade Certified goods, especially in your large chain stores. As part of Fair Trade Month 2011, Fair Trade USA has launched the Fair Trade Finder app to help consumers find Fair Trade Certified products more easily.

The free Fair Trade Finder app is available on Facebook and on your iPhone or Android mobile phones. This application allows you to enter in your location to find out where you can buy Fair Trade Certified products near you. If you find a product and location that is not yet in the application, you can easily add it so that others can find it too.

Fair Trade Finder for the iPhone

I downloaded the iPhone app myself over the weekend and I am anxious to enter in more products as I spot them. I was even surprised to learn there were already some entries for my small town. It will be fun to help expand this useful database and find more places to purchase Fair Trade Certified goodies near me.

Fair Trade vision statements says they believe the rise of the Conscious Consumer will cause a fundamental shift in the way companies do business and create a historic opportunity to reward companies that embrace sustainability.emmaspeel(at)gmail.com

I learned "We aim to channel more of the opportunities and benefits of globalization to the underprivileged farming and working families who today are being left behind." I LOVE their philosophy and business practices!

I learned that Fair Trade Certified Products are not necessarily more expensive than conventional products, it just depends on what the products are (gourmet coffee is bound to be more expensive than bananas, regardless of fair trade or not).

I really like this, because I have family who live in third-world-countries and are agricultural workers who can greatly benefit from fair-trade.

I learned that "Fair Trade began modestly in the 1940s when a few small North American and European organizations reached out to poverty stricken communities to help them sell their handicrafts to well-off markets."

I learned that Protecting the environment goes hand-in-hand with protecting the future livelihoods of local communities. The Fair Trade model requires rigorous protection of local ecosystems and ensures that farmers receive a harvest price, which will allow them to practice sustainable agriculture.

I learned that rather than creating dependency on aid, they use a market-based approach that empowers farmers to get a fair price for their harvest, helps workers create safe working conditions, provides a decent living wage and guarantees the right to organize.

Environmental standards are therefore integral to the Fair Trade criteria. These include: Protecting water resources and natural vegetation areas Promoting agricultural diversification, erosion control, and no slash and burn Restricting the use of pesticides and fertilizers Banning use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) Requiring proper management of waste, water and energy

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